National Assembly · Afternoon Sitting

Hon. Members, I wish to introduce to you a delegation of officials from the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, who are seated in the Public Gallery. The delegation comprises of nine officers from the Commission Secretariat, led by Mr. Muhammed Ahmed Zailani, Director, Human Resources and Administration. The Commission is the equivalent of our Commission for…

[(Applause)]

Hon. Deputy Speaker, I beg to lay the following papers on the Table of the House:

Can we have the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Agriculture and Livestock? As we wait for the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Agriculture and Livestock, let us have the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure. Where is Hon. GK? Hon. GK, do you have a paper to present? We will get to the next Order as you get ready. Hon. GK, it is alright.…

Hon. Deputy Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table: Report of the Departmental Committee on Education on its consideration of the Higher Education Loans Board (Amendment) Bill, (National Assembly Bill No. 58 of 2022) . Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker.

Thank you. Let us have the Vice-Chairperson of the Public Petitions Committee, Hon. Janet Sitienei, Member for Turbo.

Hon. Deputy Speaker. I beg to lay the following

Thank you. The Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning.

Hon. Deputy Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table: Report of the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning on its consideration of the Parliamentary Pensions (Amendment) Bill, (National Assembly Bill No.15 of 2023) .

It is you again, Hon. Janet Sitienei, Member for Turbo.

Hon. Deputy Speaker, I beg to give notice of the following Motion: THAT, this House adopts the Report of the Public Petitions Committee on its consideration of Public Petition No.11 of 2022 regarding the pollution of Athi River, laid on the Table of the House on Thursday, 11th April 2024. Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker.

Next Order.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. I have a response to the request for statement by Hon. Benjamin Gathiru before the Departmental

[(Loud consultations)]

Order, Hon. Members. Hon. Oundo, kindly speak in low tones so that we can all hear the Member for Thika Town. She is explaining something very important.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. The response was that contrary to the proposal by Hon. Benjamin Gathiru that the Ministry responsible for the Service should not be allowed to exploit the provisions of Article 223 of the

any other means other than the normal budget allocation from the Exchequer. The Service is alive to previous incidents of corruption allegations and that is why the NYS Act, 2018 introduced the NYS Council to play an oversight role. The Service has since strengthened internal control measures including migrating from the IFMIS to the ERP System. Unless there is evidence to the contrary, the Servi…

[(Loud consultations)]

Order, Hon. Members. Hon. Gathoni Wamuchomba, we cannot hear Hon. Alice Ng’ang’a.

On point of order, Hon. Deputy Speaker.

What is your point of order, Hon. KJ?

Hon. Deputy Speaker, I have a quick reaction to the Statement that has been presented by the Chairperson. I sympathise with her because the matters being handled here would have needed Waziri to do a bit more than what has been presented here. Hon. Benjamin Gathiru Mwangi asked questions that had everything to do with fairness, especially as concerns the constituencies in Nairobi. This response ju…

Thank you, Hon. KJ. You have made your point. Hon. Beatrice Elachi. I am giving an opportunity to two Members from Nairobi County to comment on this.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. Just to add to what the Member for Dagoretti South has said, the NYS recruitment team should ensure that each of the 17 constituencies in Nairobi has its day for recruitment. They also need to inform us how many people came from each constituency during the last recruitment. Each of the 17 constituencies should have their day of recruitment. And in that scenario, th…

Member for Mathare, Hon. Anthony Oluoch. You have two minutes. Please, be brief. Give him the microphone.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. This is a grave matter that is central to Members of Parliament. The crux of the matter is the question of equity, equalisation and equal opportunity. Nairobi County comprises more than three million people. In terms of contributions to the Exchequer and money that we contribute to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Nairobi County requires to be at the table of ever…

Lastly, I will give the Member for Starehe, Hon. Amos Mwago, a chance. Kindly, keep your contributions to one minute and half.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to weigh in on the debate about the recruitment by different Government agencies and institutions. Nairobi has become disenfranchised because even when they come for recruitment, they tell the persons who are being recruited to look at the back of the identity cards. You know very well that most of the people were not born in Nairobi …

Hon. Chairperson, I will give you two minutes to respond or clarify.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. As is the norm of this House, once a Question is asked on the Floor of the House, the Committee usually writes to the Ministry for the responses. We can invite the Cabinet Secretary and the Members to a meeting if they are not satisfied with the answers that I have laid on the Floor of the House. He can come and answer to them directly. I will also invite them to ou…

Thank you. It is noted. Next is a response by Hon. Sirma, Chairperson of the National Government, Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF). You are responding to the Question by the Member for Soy.

[(Loud consultations)]

Hon. Deputy Speaker, Standing Order 44 (c) of the National Assembly provides for any Member to request for a statement from a committee chairperson relating to matters under the mandate of the committee. In line with that, Hon. David Kiplagat had requested for a statement from the Chairperson, National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) regarding the management of fund account man…

On a point of order, Hon. Deputy Speaker. A moment! Hon. Member for Soy, what is your point of order?

Thank you. I can barely hear the Chairperson of the NG-CDF, and neither do I have a copy of that Statement. Can they avail a copy of that Statement so that if the Chair is not audible, I can be able to follow? Otherwise, I may not know what he is presenting. Member for Soy, kindly switch off your microphone. It is futile for you to request me for a copy and yet, you can just walk to the Clerks’ T…

Okay. I will touch on the number of constituencies that do not have substantive fund account managers and the reasons for that.

summarised below:

Yes, the Member for Soy, Hon. David Kiplagat.

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. At least, I have now received the Statement. He was not audible. I thank the Chairperson of the Committee on NG-CDF for trying to bring this Statement to the House, despite the inadequacy in terms of addressing the real issues. The real issues, Hon. Chairperson, even looking at your Statement alone, there are about 31 constituencies that are without substantive fund…

increased the budget. Thank you. Now we will go to the next Statement. Okay, I will give you a minute, Hon. Makali. We need to make progress on this.

Thank you very much, Hon. Deputy Speaker. I have been keenly listening to the statistics that are being provided by the Chair of the Select Committee. While the statistics make a lot of sense in terms of where we are, I think there are about two fundamental questions that the Chair of that Committee needs to ask himself. In a situation where a constituency is sharing a fund account manager with an…

On a point of order, Hon. Deputy Speaker. What is your point of order, Hon. Nyikal?

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. As you are aware and as you have even indicated to me, I had a Motion of Adjournment and the time should actually have been... I will get to you, Hon. Nyikal. You are on my schedule. We are now at Statements. I will give you an opportunity at Statements. Hon. Nyikal, we are just completing the responses to Questions asked previously. So, we are going to have the Ch…

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. Pursuant to Standing Order 44 (2) (c) , Hon. David Kiplagat requested for a statement on 7th March 2024 regarding the distribution of subsidised fertilisers to farmers. The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development responded as follows to the issues raised in the request for statement. The first issue was on the quantity of subsidised fertilisers stocked in…

access. The NCPB has sold 330,650 bags of 50 kilograms for the long rainy season in the North Rift region. The third issue that he raised was on the mechanism the Ministry has put in place to ensure that farmers in the North Rift receive subsidised fertilisers in the next one week before the planting season begins. The NCPB has put in place a distribution plan in conjunction with all contracted s…

Hon. Deputy Speaker, I have a right to respond. It is only that all my statements came at once today. I wish I had contributed on the other one. I was unable to finish my contribution.

You are eating into your minutes. You better proceed.

At this point, I thank the Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Agriculture and Livestock for the comprehensive Statement on the distribution of fertiliser. When I was seeking for it, the farmers had a lot of difficulties in terms of accessing subsidised fertiliser. However, things on the ground have really improved now. Farmers are able to access it. The pressure has gone down. Given that t…

will not witness long queues when the rains starts and it catches us off-guard. Lastly, we know there is an issue that affects fertilisers in general. This is the fake fertiliser which the Committee is looking into now. Once that report will be brought to this House, we shall say more on behalf of the farmers of the North Rift. I thank the Chairman for that Statement. I assure the House that, at…

Hon. Deputy Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (c) , I wish to request for a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Tourism and Wildlife regarding the forthcoming recruitment of Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) rangers. On 19th March 2024, KWS advertised vacancies for assistant warders and rangers to be stationed in conservation areas across the coun…

Hon. Deputy Speaker, I understand. The problem is that this is an extremely urgent matter, given that the recruitment begins next week. I am seeking a consequential ruling from you. I had to come through this route because I had no other avenue. Given the urgency of this matter, could you kindly ask that it

county level recruitment is anti-hustler, anti-people and anti-youth who are not able to travel the long distances to county levels. That is all I am asking, Hon. Deputy Speaker. Hon. Kamket, you make a very good point. If you want a shorter route because this is an urgent matter, seek that the Chairperson of the Departmental

Hon. Deputy Speaker, could you make a ruling that the Cabinet Secretary be summoned tomorrow because the recruitment begins next week on Monday? That is all I am pleading for. I am not the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Tourism and Wildlife. I do not have the powers to summon the Cabinet Secretary. However, I can direct that the Chairperson of the Committee summons the Cabinet Secre…

On a point of order, Hon. Deputy Speaker. Leader of the Minority Party, what is your point of order?

Hon. Deputy Speaker, I can see the dilemma you find yourself in concerning the matter raised by Hon. Kamket. It is indeed a very weighty matter. It calls for some unique intervention. As a House, we do not want to be seen as micro- managing the Executive. How I wish that the Leader of the Majority Party could listen to me. The matter raised by Hon. Kamket requires some unique intervention. The re…

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. I rise to support the statement by Hon. Kamket. It is indeed true that travelling long distances to county headquarters is punishing unemployed young Kenyans. We should not be doing that at this time. Just as we do with police and military recruitment, the KWS one should also be done at the sub-county level. Members of Parliament do not operate at the county level.…

the recruitment to continue as it is. I have been to Tiaty, which Hon. Kamket is fond of referring to as East Pokot County. Tiaty by itself is bigger than Kiambu County as a whole. If you are asking the people of Tiaty to travel from Tiaty to Kabarnet in this era or banditry, you will be subjecting those young men and women to bandits.

Hon. Deputy Speaker, something is creating this confusion. Previously, people never used to take employment in the KWS seriously. It is because of the current high rate of unemployment that they are now taking it seriously.

[(Loud consultations)]

Two years ago, the KWS recruitment was done in the same way. Because of the current high rate of unemployment in the country, people are now taking the exercise more seriously and getting involved. My question is on how that recruitment will be stopped today. I hope the Leader of the Majority Party can help with this if recruitment is starting on Monday. Today is Thursday. Tomorrow is Friday, fol…

[(Hon. John Kiarie spoke off the record)]

Thank you, Hon. Deputy Speaker. As Nairobi Members of Parliament, we represent approximately 2.8 million voters and over 5

sub-counties and it is supposed to be done at the constituency level. In other areas, it is done at the sub-county level. However, in Nairobi, it is only being done at Nyayo National Stadium. At Nyayo Stadium, it is not recruitment that is taking place. It is just filling in of the names of the people who come to be recruited. The recruitment should be done at the constituency level so that the re…

Hon. Deputy Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (C) , I rise to request for a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure regarding the status of the Suneka Airstrip. Suneka Airstrip was established during the British colonial administration and stands as a testament to Bonchari's rich history and heritage. Over the decades…

[(The Deputy Speaker (Hon. Gladys Boss)]

[[The Temporary Speaker (Hon. (Dr) Rachael Nyamai) took the Chair]]

Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure on the following:

Is the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure in the House? In the absence of the Chair, do we have the Vice-Chair? The Leader of the Majority Party, kindly respond to that request for statement.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I do not know where the Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure has gone. The last time I checked, he was seated here. However, I will relay that information to him and he can advise the House on Tuesday when he can bring a good answer.

Hon. Charles Onchoke, make sure you are in the House on Tuesday. A decision on when the Statement will be brought will be made. Hon. Members, next is Hon. Keynan, the Member for Eldas.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. Pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (C) , I rise to request for a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security regarding the disappearance of a prominent elder from my constituency called Omar Mahamed Nur, nicknamed Omar the Fox. Mr. Omar Mahamed Nur of ID No. 2107537 is a businessman who ha…

Thank you very much, Hon. Keynan. The Vice-Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Affairs, Hon. Rasso, please proceed.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. From what Hon. Keynan has raised, the issue of people disappearing is slowly coming back. For all intent and purpose, I thought we buried the idea of Kenyans disappearing with the last Government. Kenyans are disappearing when there are law courts and law enforcers. People believed to be involved in crime must have their day in court. For that reason, we request …

Thank you very much, Hon. Vice-Chairman. I believe two weeks is quite in order, Hon. Keynan.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, we are talking about arbitrary arrest and disappearance. I thought my good friend, Hon. Rasso, who is a distinguished Member of this House and our patron, will be the first person to say he will submit a report within the shortest time possible. I plead with him that two weeks is a long time because we do not know whether that person is alive or dead. Hon. Temporary Speake…

Hon. Members, I see several interventions but I do not want to encourage debate on this matter. I would like to give a chance to the Vice-Chairman based on the sensitivity of the matter. Before I do so, I will give a chance to Hon. Junet. You have one minute, Hon. Junet.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I am shocked that the Vice-Chairman can ask for two weeks to deal with this matter. I want him to put himself in the shoes of the family that has lost that businessman. Their situation, as of today, is that they are suffering. They are in agony because they do not know whether their loved one is alive or dead. We were told that the era of extrajudicial killings was over. We…

Hon. Members, a statement that has been sought obviously has timelines. I would like to go back to the Vice-Chairman based on the sensitivity of the matter as it has been elaborated by Hon. Keynan and supported by Hon. Junet. Can you, please, respond on when is the ‘shortest time’ within which you can give us a response on this matter?

Thank you very Much….

Hon. Members, please let us give the Hon. Member for Saku, who is the Vice-Chairman, an opportunity to respond?

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I believe that Hon. Keynan is loud and clear. Kenya is governed by the rule of law.

[(Hon. Junet Mohamed spoke off the record)]

We must work within the rules of possibility. Give the Committee seven days to push the Ministry to give us a response. Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Hon. Members, I think we should put this matter to rest. We will get a response within seven days. Thank you, Hon. Rasso. The next request for statement is by the Member for Mwea. Please, proceed.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (c) , I rise to request for a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Blue Economy and Irrigation regarding the irregular maintenance of the drainage systems, on-farm roads and canals that have caused flooding within Mwea Irrigation Scheme and the surrounding areas. Hon. Temporary Speaker, followin…

Thank you very much, Hon. Member for Mwea. Is the Chairman for the Departmental Committee on Blue Economy, Water and Irrigation in the House? Is the Vice-Chairman around? In the absence of the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman, I direct this matter to the Leader of the Majority Party.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I will relay the request to the Chairman of the Departmental Committee on Blue Economy and Irrigation, Hon. Kangogo. He was here but he left. The day today comes immediately after the Eid ul-Fitr holiday. Therefore, most Members are still in a holiday mood. That is why our numbers are not pleasing this afternoon. However, I will make sure that the Chairman, Hon.…

some of the flood water. That is why the water is ravaging villages where people live. Hon. Temporary Speaker, it is sad that, as it rains, the NIA is not harnessing the water and directing it to dams like Thiba Dam that was commissioned recently by just desilting the canals and taking care of the in-farm road infrastructure within Mwea Irrigation Scheme. I will endeavour to get the Chairperson t…

Leader of Majority Party, in addition to the kind words that you have spoken about the Member for Mwea, I suggest that you put it together with the request for statement that was sought from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Transport and Infrastructure. This is so that both of them get a response on whether the statement requests will be responded to on Tuesday. Thank you very much…

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Hon. Members, before we go to the Leader of Majority Party, we will have a progress report by the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning. Please, proceed.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I rise pursuant to Standing Order 127 to give a progress report on business pending before the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning. On Thursday, 21st March 2024, pursuant to the provisions of the Standing Order 44 (2)

Chairperson, I was waiting for you to make a request. How much more time do you need?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, we request for 30 more days to lay comprehensive statements on the three requests.

Thirty days?

Yes, Hon. Temporary Speaker. The substantive Speaker requested that the matters be subjected to inquiry rather than be dealt through statements. Therefore, we have to meet the boda boda riders’ groups and all the players in the financial sector, including commercial banks, Central Bank of Kenya and the National Treasury. The 30 days we have requested for will be sufficient.

Very well. This being and inquiry, you deserve the 30 days. You have 30 days to respond to all those issues. Hon. Members, we will now receive a statement by the Leader of the Majority Party on the business for the coming week.

I am sorry, I was consulting with Hon. Junet. He is a good leader from the minority. Hon. Temporary Speaker, pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44 (2) (a) , I rise to give a statement on behalf of the House Business Committee, which met on Tuesday 9th April 2024 to prioritise the business for consideration by the House during the coming week. Before I give the Statement, allow me to off…

it to enable its conclusion by the House within the next few weeks. It is important for Members to note that this Session will be quite short considering that we are already done with the first week that had a break yesterday. Also, 1st of May falls within this part of the Session. Therefore, within the remaining three weeks, we have very few sittings. Hon. Temporary Speaker, with regard to the b…

Thank you very much. Hon. Members, I would now like to put the question. Next Order. First Reading

[(The Bill was read a Second Time and committed to Committee of the whole House)]

Hon. Members, I would like to order that we reorganise business for the House and go to Order No. 11, and then come back to Order No. 10. Order No. 11.

Hon. Members, no one was on the Floor on this Motion and so, it is open to debate. Those who are interested in debating Motion No. 11, please, press the intervention button. Hon. Kajwang', are you interested?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, we are still absorbing what has just happened but, anyway, we will have another day. Every dog has its day. The question of audit on National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG- CDF) accounts is important. The other day, I raised a quorum issue because there were just a few of us here. In my opinion, it was better that Members, especially from Vihiga County, be pr…

Thank you very much. Hon. Gitonga Murugara, Member for Tharaka.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I rise to support the Motion to adopt the Committee's Report on the five constituencies under discussion.

Parliament have no role to play in the NG-CDF anymore? That must be very clear to everybody. The Act removed our oversight role at the constituency level. Members of Parliament now have to come to this House to debate, adopt, or reject reports, similar to this one. We do not want to hear cases all over of Members of Parliament having misappropriated or mishandled the NG-CDF funds. The NG-CDF is no…

Hon. Kawanjiku.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for allowing me to contribute to this debate, clearly stating that we support the Report of the Auditor-General. Our county governments should learn from what the NG-CDF is doing, especially in project implementation, and ensure that we oversee whatever the NG-CDF committees and the boards are doing. If you move around our constituencies and most of the counties…

The NG-CDF is doing amazing work back in mashinani.

There being no further interest in this subject, I would like to call upon the Mover to reply. Hon. Mulyungi. Next Order.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Chairman. The Temporary Chairman : Hon. Members, this is the Committee of the whole House on the National Government Administration Laws (Amendment) Bill No.73 of 2023. Hon. Junet, there is nothing out of order yet. Kindly, resume your seat. I have not given you the chance and therefore, you have to resume your seat. What is out of order, Hon. Junet?

[(Hon. David Ochieng’)]

[(Hon. Junet Mohamed spoke off the record)]

I wish to rise under Standing Order 35, and request the Hon. Temporary Chairman to ascertain whether there is a Quorum in the House. The Temporary Chairman : Is that all? I thought there was something fundamentally wrong with the procedure. That used to be done by… Let us ring the Quorum Bell for ten minutes. Order!

[(Hon. David Ochieng’)]

[(Hon. Junet Mohamed spoke off the record)]

[(The Quorum Bell was rung)]

[(Hon. Naisula Lesuuda walked towards the exit)]

Bell is being rung. Only the Whips. Our rules are clear. The Temporary Chairman (Hon. David Ochieng’): Hon. Members, after ringing the Bell for 10 minutes, the situation is still the same as it was when the Bell started ringing. I beg that we move to reporting.

The Chairperson.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to report that the Committee of the Whole House in its consideration of the National Government Administration Laws (Amendment) Bill, (National Assembly Bill No.73 of 2023) , was interrupted due to lack of quorum.